Bears
Bears QB Caleb Williams has sky-high expectations heading into his second season as a former number-one overall pick. Williams talked about his perspective on not having pressure and focusing on doing the task at hand.
“Pressure’s not a thing for me,” Williams said, via ESPN’s Courtney Cronin. “I don’t think of it that way.”
“It’s not my job to care what the outside noise is and things like that. My job is take care of everything in here and go out there and play. I know we didn’t win as many games as we wanted to last year, but I didn’t go 20 [touchdowns] and 20 interceptions and things like that. So, you know, take it for what you want, but no pressure is prevalent; pressure is a privilege, but you know the situation that I’m at. I don’t think I have pressure.”
Chicago HC Ben Johnson has been impressed with Williams’ ability to identify his mistakes himself in real time and fix them instead of needing instruction.
“He knows what’s coming, and we’re getting to the point now where I don’t even have to say as much,” Johnson said. “He’s as hard on himself as I’m being on him, and he’s disappointed when we’re not spitting the plays out in the huddle the way we should or we’re not taking the proper drop or our eyes aren’t in the right place.”
“He’s getting to that point where it’s more self-correction, and we’re off and running from there. I’m really excited about where he’s at mentally.”
Bears
Bears HC Ben Johnson recently called out the team’s offense for their “sloppy” performance in practice.
“It was sloppy — sloppier than we were hoping we would be at this point,” Johnson said, via the Chicago Sun-Times. “It’s something we’re going to have to address, for sure. It showed up more today than it has in practice. This was more like a real game. And if it continues like that, we’re not going to win many games.”
“Execution of the play wasn’t what we wanted to be,” Johnson added. “It’s a credit to the defense. They came out and they kicked the offense’s rear in that. So that’s what showed up to me — they wanted it a little bit more.”
Packers
- Per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, in an ideal world the Packers would want to feature both TEs Tucker Kraft and Luke Musgrave. Packers HC Matt LaFleur told him: “What’s cool is they are both fully capable of doing a lot of cool stuff. It definitely gives you a lot more flexibility on offense, the athleticism you’re looking for in both the run and the pass game. It makes you a lot more unpredictable.”
- According to Fowler, the plan is still for Packers WR Christian Watson to start the season on the PUP list, even though he’s moving incredibly well. A Packers source told Fowler he even joked with Watson about whether he actually tore his ACL in January.
Vikings
Vikings WR Jordan Addison may be the clear No. 2 option in Minnesota behind top WR Justin Jefferson, but he has a goal this season of proving he’s capable of being a No. 1 receiver who just plays with another elite option. He is now facing a three-game suspension to start the 2025 season.
“I would say so. That’s why I said I’ll keep getting better to be a better all-around receiver to show [ the team] I am that,” Addison said via ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. “I don’t want people to look at me and think he’s good at these two things but lacking here. It’s about letting the coaches know I’m getting better in the offense every single year.”
- Fowler mentions the Vikings anticipate their defensive line being the strength of the defense, particularly with the additions of DTs Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave this offseason. He adds, however, that Allen, Hargrave and DT Harrison Phillips all have some mileage, so fifth-round DT Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins is a legit option to crack the rotation.
- Vikings RB Jordan Mason got a notably large workload the day Fowler was at practice and he thinks there’s a good chance Minnesota employs a 50-50 split between Mason and RB Aaron Jones.
- Fowler notes Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy, by the accounts of folks in Minnesota, has had a lot of learning experiences in training camp so far. That’s a nice way of saying he’s been up and down but he points out Minnesota’s defense is tough to practice against and the team is hopeful the experience will better prepare McCarthy for the regular season.
- Addison on McCarthy: “I would say he has a pretty strong arm. That’s one of his strengths. He’s accurate. Reads the defense pretty well. I feel he’s going to be good. It’s still early right now. But when it comes to anticipation throws, beating the defense with the ball, I feel he’s going to be a great quarterback in this league.”
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